OBESITY

Abstract

CRITIQUE OF THE CURRENT ENERGY THEORY OF OBESITY The usual conception of obesity, particularly in the United States, is that it is always caused by an imbalance between intake and output of energy. "Exogenous or simple obesity is the result of maladjustments between food and exercise. Endogenous obesity is due to the lowered metabolism resulting from a disturbance in hypothalamic or endocrine functions, e. g., gonads, pituitary, or thyroid" (Best and Taylor,¹ page 981). According to Means,² both the exogenous and the endogenous type of obesity are due to a simple disproportion between the intake of food and the energy requirement of the body. Endogenous obesity is endogenous merely in the sense that in the creation of such a disproportion a fall in the rate of oxidation in the body plays a role. A much greater proportion of obesity, however, is of the exogenous type. As a matter